Staff honoured in Gold Star Awards

Tuesday, 07 May 2013

Dr Andrew Charlton-Perez received the Gold Star Personal Tutor Award

Each year, Reading University Students' Union (RUSU) invites students to nominate members of staff whom they feel have had a great impact on their learning whilst at University. This year's winners were recently presented with their Gold Stars at an awards ceremony in RUSU's 3sixty. Congratulations to all!

Faculty Awards

Professor Peter Kruschwitz - Department of Classic, Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Science Lecturer

"Peter has been commended by students for always being available for a chat, despite his vast duties as Head of Department. He is always ready to help students achieve all they can on their dissertation and extremely supportive. The winner has worked hard to create a friendly and relaxed atmosphere within the department and students have stated they have the utmost thanks for this lecturer."

Professor Matthew Almond - Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences

"Matthew gives consistently well planned lectures which are always interesting for students. The winner is always happy to answer student questions, explain things further and make sure they are able to excel at any given opportunity. One student has been quoted as saying that Matthew has ‘inspired them to become a teacher, hoping that they can one day be as supportive and engaging as they have found him to be'."

Dr Sally Lloyd-Evans - Department of Geography and Environmental Science, Faculty of Science

"The winner of the Science Gold Star Award always gives enjoyable and interesting lectures, is incredibly enthusiastic and is always on hand to help students, whether that is via email or one to one meetings. Sally is praised by students for being supportive, patient and understanding, always being on hand to offer guidance and words of encouragement. When students were faced with a new style of working she takes time out to allow students to hand in drafts of their reports and offer hand written comments giving not only fantastic feedback, but motivational words of encouragement."

Stuart Morris - Centre for Entrepreneurship, Henley Business School

"The winner of the Henley Business School Gold Star Award has inspired students to become entrepreneurs, start up their own companies and create new ideas! Stuart engages students through the use of captivating lectures, interactive sessions and the flipped classroom style of teaching. He always has time for students, whilst taking out extra time to support those with developing a personal project or ambition."

Personal Tutor Gold Star

Dr Andrew Charlton-Perez - Department of Meteorology

"The winner of the Personal Tutor Award has worked hard to support students in their academic studies, from their first year right through to their final year. Andrew has inspired students to do their best in their degree and has been a pillar of support to students within their final year. The nominations received described him as extremely approachable, quick to respond to emails, supportive throughout their time at University and excellent at ensuring students receive all the support possible from the University. The winner goes the extra mile by setting aside weekly sessions to go over dissertation work and speak about possible employment opportunities for when his tutees leave the University."

Support Staff Gold Star

Jane Batchelor, Careers Development Advisor - Real Estate and Planning, Henley Business School

"The winner of the Support Staff award always makes time for students. She has a fantastic knowledge of companies in the sector and has run some amazing events for students, along with one to one meetings about employability. When students have interviews, Jane goes to relevant members of senior staff who can offer the student advice on their specific subject and interview area, along with offering interview tips and techniques. She is a true example of going above and beyond to help students."

Outstanding Contribution Gold Stars

Two awards of recognition were also presented, both to members of staff who will be retiring this year:

Professor Sandy Ghandhi, Research Adviser - Special Recognition for Outstanding Contribution in Law

Sheila Billard, Lecturer - Special Recognition for Outstanding Contribution in Clinical Language Science